Igniting apparatus for gas or oil motor engines



(No Model.)

N. A. OTTO.

IGNITING APPARATUS POR GAS 0R OIL MOTOR ENGINES.

Patented Sept'. 25, 1888 f ,w W JJ N PETERS; Phulo-Uthugriphor. wnshllfgan. D1 C.

UNrTnn STATES PATENT Ottica,

N ICOLAUS AUGUST OTTO, OF COLOGNE, ASSIGNOR TO THE GAS MOTOREN FABRIK DEUTZ, OF DEUTZ-ON-THE-RHINE, GERMANY.

IGNITING APPARATUS FOR GAS OR OIL MOTOR ENGlNES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 390,092l dated September 25, 3.888.

Application filed March 27, 1868. Serial No. 268.631. (No model.) Patented in England Fehruary29,1888, No. 3,095, and in Belgium March 14, 1888, No. 81,028.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that. I, NIcoLAUs AUGUST OTTO, a citizen of Prussia, residing at Cologne, in the German Empire, engineer, have invented certain new and usefulV Improvements in Igniting Apparatus for Gas or Oil Motor Engines, (for which I have obtained patent in Belgium, No. 81,028, dated March 14, 1888, and-have made application for patent in Great c Britain, No. 3,095, dated February 29, 1888,)

of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to my gas-motor engines where the charges are ignited by means of an externally-heated tube, and in which the t5 passage leading back from theigniting-port of the engine-cylinder to the said igniting-tube had an extension beyond the latter, forming a chamber for the reception of a portion of the combustible charge which entered the said 2o passage aud heated igniting-tube on opening the slide or valve establishing the communication between these parts and the cylinderport.

The present invention relates to au im- 2 5 proved arrangement of the said passage, igniting-tube, chamber, and slide or valve, so as to insure, first, that the combustiongases that remain in these parts shall be effectually cleared out of the passage before the entrance 3o of the next charge of combustible gas, and, secondly, that the gases remaining in the said parts shall be reduced to atmospheric pressure before the entrance of the next combustible charge, so as to enable the latter to effectually penetrate into the same and to effect its certain and rapid ignition. For this purpose the several parts are arranged as follows The valve or slide which opens and closes the communication between the cylinder and the said 4o parts, instead of being situated immediately against the cylinder, between this and the passage leading to the heated firing-tube, is situated between the said passage and the tiringtube, and the before-mentioned chamber is made to communicate with the passage at a point between the valve or slide and the cylinder, so that the chamber and passage are always in communication with the cylinder. Furthermore, the valve or slide is so actuated by a cam or eccentric that the communication 5c between the cylinder and the passage, the chamber, and the heated igniting-tube Vis kept open during the working-stroke,the expellingstroke, and in some cases, also, during the suction-stroke of the engine,while during the compression-stroke the communication with the igniting-tube is closed, the passage and chamber still remaining open to the cylinder. The result of this arrangement is that during the expelling and suction strokes, the several 6o parts being open to the atmosphere, the residual combustion-gases from the last ignition will be free to escape until they are at atmospheric pressure, and that on the following compression-stroke the small volume of combustion-gases remaining in the passage will be readily forced into the chamber by the compressed combustible charge entering from the cylinder, the passage becoming thus entirely filled and the chamber partially so by such 7o charge, so that on the valve or slide being now opened only combustible gas will enter the Aigniting-tube, thus insuring a certain and rapid ignition of the charge.

The arrangement of the ignitin'g apparatus 75 for carrying out the above-described mode of action can be variously modified. Thus, aci eording to one arrangement, the passage from the cylinder extends vertically upward to the heated igniting-tube,immediately below which 8o is arranged a sliding plug-valve at right angles to the passage for closing the communication, the stem of which valve is acted upon by a helical spring tending to keep the valve open, this being closed at the desired moment by a lever acted upon by a cam on a counter-shaft of the engine. The chamber is in the form of a tube projecting horizontally from the passage at a point below the valve.

It is found advantageous to effect theignition 9o of the charge somewhat sooner when the en- Y gine is running fast than when running slow, and in order to enable this to be done the cam acting on the valve is arranged so that it can be shifted on the shaft in order to bring apart thereof which is more in advance to act upon the valve-stem when the engine is to run at a quick speed. Theigniting-tube is surrounded by the annular flame of a lunsen burner inlosed in a cylindrical casing.

According to another modification the passage projects horizontally from the side or end of the cylinder, and the igniting-tube projects vertically upward from the end thereof, the valve being situated vertically below the igniting-tnbe, and the tubular chamber extends vertically downward from an intermediate point of the passage.

In the accompanying drawings, illustrating my invention, Figure 1 is a transverse sectional view of the cylinder of a gas-motor engine, showing my invention applied thereto, the parts being in position to establish communication between the cylinder and the ignitingtube; Fig. 2, a similar View showing communication closed between the cylinder and ig niting-tube; Fig. 2, a detail view of the cam; Figs. 3 and et, similar views showing modifica tions of the invention.

Referring to the drawings, Figs. 1 and 2 show an arrangement in which the passage It, extending vertically up from the engine-cylinder, has the externally-heated igniting-tube i' fixed toits Lipper end, the tuber being heated by the surrounding flame of a Bunsen burner, (t, supplied with gas through a pipe. At an intermediate point of the passage h is the tubular chamber i", extending at right angles therefrom, and at a point between the chamber 1" and the igniting-tube is the sliding pistonvalve a, the stem of which is acted upon by a helical spring, f,whieh tends to keep the valve open, as shown.

A lever, b c, bears with its one arm upon the end of the valve-stem, and with its other end upon a cam, n.,on the counter-shaft e, driven at half the speed of the engine-shaft. This cam is so formed that during that part of the revolution of c which corresponds to the working, expelling, and suction strokes of the engine it does not act upon the valve, so that during this time the passage h, chamber r', and igniting-tube,being in communication with the cylinder, will only contain gases at atmospheric pressure; but as the piston is about to con1- mence its compressing-stroke the cam a is made to close the valve o and to keep this closed until the end of such stroke. During this time a portion of the compressed combustible charge enters the passage 7i from the cylinder, thereby forcing the small quantity of combustion-gases remaining in it from the last ignition into the tube i", which also becomes partly filled with the combustible charge, so that on the valve being now opened again by the spring only combustible gas will pass into the igniting-tube, and consequently the certain and rapid ignition of the cylinder-charge will be insured. Then the valve o is open, it is for the valvestem.

fixed on the counter shaft e, so as always to effect the closing of the valve vat a determined moment; or it may be on a sleeve, in, capable of being slid on the shaft c, and be made some width, with one side sloping, as shown at Fig. 2, so that by varying the position of the cam relatively to the lever c the moment at which the valve is made to open so as to effect the ignition may be varied. It is found that when a gasmotor engine is running at a quick speed it is advantageous to effect the ignition of the charge somewhat sooner than when it is running at a slower speed, and this may be effected by the above-described arrangement by shifting the cam so that the part with shorter dwell acts upon the lever c.

Figs. 3 and 4 show the modified arrangement of the several parts.

The passage h here extends horizontally from the side of the cylinder, with the igniting-tube 'r projecting vertically upward from its end, and the tubular chamber r' projecting vertically downward, the valve o being also moved vertically from below. The several parts are otherwise of the same construction and action as described.

Having thus described the nature of my invention and the best means I know for carrying the same into practical effect, I claim*- 1. In apparatus for igniting the charges of gas-motor engines by means of an externallyheated tube, the combination of a passage leading from the cylinder to the firing-tube, a valve or slide arranged to close the communication between the tube and passage, and a chamber communicating with the passage so that the passage and chamber are always in communication with the engine-cylinder, but the com munication with the igniting-tube is closed by the valve during the compression-stroke of the engine, substantially as and for the purposes herein described.

2. In igniting apparatus of gas-motor engines, the combination of a passage, 71 leading to the cylinder, externally -heated ignitingtube r, tubular chamber of', communicating with passage 71., and valve o, for closing the communication between theigniting-tube and passage 7L during the compression-stroke of the engine, substantially herein described.

3. In combination with the valve e, for closing the communication between the ignitingtube r and the passage 7L, an adjustable cam, a, of variable width so formed that when placed in one position for a quick speed ofthe engine it will effect the opening of the valve earlier than when placed in another position.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specificatiomin the presence of two subscribing witnesses, this 12th day of March, A. D. 1,858.

NICOLAUS AUGUST OTTO.

IVitiiesses:

'ln'rna LANGEN, IVILHELM Birnen.

IOO 

